Today we’d like to introduce you to Brian Waldo.
Brian, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I have been working in health and fitness for 35 years. After working clinically for 8 years, attaining my masters degree and working in big box fitness for 9 years I began a journey of building a boutique training facility that serves a wide and diverse clientele in 2010. While beginning the journey of building our business I taught at Dakota County Technical College as adjunct faculty in the Exercise and Sport Science Department. Starting from scratch was stressful but rewarding at the same time.
Our youngest clients at our facility are in middle school and our oldest client is 84 years old.
Our team of nine coaches and personal trainers serve through dedication to helping people be the best version of self possible. We specialize in 1\1 training, nutrition coaching, providing the global fitness format Training For Warriors group fitness system, sports performance programming as well as corrective exercise programs for pain and injury management.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The road has not always been smooth. Being the first boutique studio in Cottage Grove, it took time, effort and patience to gain awareness and interest in our training. In 2014 I made the decision to affiliate with the Training For Warriors system. This system allowed us to have a systematic way of training coaches and delivering a best in class training program. This program allowed us to grow significantly as we gained a great reputation for delivering results and care for a wide variety of clients. Of course COVID era closure was a significant strain on our business. Along with my Coaching team and our members we pivoted quickly to online training, supporting our members daily with mindset coaching, workouts on zoom, youtube and so on. We did lose 30% of our membership during that time. Fortunately, we were able to continue to pay our coaches and the vast majority of our membership stood by our program and by each other. Now, we have grown from a 1,100 sqft facility to an 8,000 sqft facility and offering over 30 group classes per week as well as 1\1 training, nutrition coaching for virtually any age or interest level.
We’ve been impressed with Optimal Health & Performance, LLC, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
We have been in business for 16 years and 14 years in Cottage Grove, MN. Our fitness studio focuses on services that are meaningful for those seeking to improve health, improve longevity, move freely and perform at a higher level. Anyone who comes to our facility is either in a class or training with a personal trainer. We have a team of trainers with a combined total of over 100 years of experience.
Our program is about focusing on self improvement in a cooperative environment supporting others in our training system versus competition. We also offer multi-faceted offerings for group fitness and or 1\1 services that coach traditional strength and conditioning, nutrition education, mind-set coaching and corrective exercise programs. We are working hard to collaborate with area health care providers and add additional services.
We recently also have launched a support business called Champion Meals (www.championmeals.store) that provides weekly freshly prepared meals that are high in protein, fiber and nutrients. Supporting our clients and community with quality fresh nutrition options is a growing aspect of our business. We are hoping to partner with other fitness facilities in this area.
I am very proud to have a diverse coaching staff and the fact that we serve a broad population of people vs a niche system that focuses one just one style of training.
Is there anyone you’d like to thank or give credit to?
Many people have supported and encouraged me over the years. First and foremost, my wife Jody has been a rock of support over the years. During the harder days she has always remained supportive and helped me filter my thoughts, decisions and the next move. My parents and extended family have also been great support at various times helping with buildouts of new spaces, checking in and providing supportive words of encouragement. I also have been very fortunate to have the help of clients who have stepped up over the years in various ways to help us grow volunteering labor and in some cases help raise money for projects.
Martin Rooney, the founder of Training For Warriors has had a big impact in my personal mind set and the success of our overall program and value system. Finally, our clients over the years including the current times are the key to our success. Without our clients commitment to training, our business would not exist. The focus has always been and will always be to come along side our clients and support them in their quest for their goals!
Pricing:
- 1\1 Training 65-100.00\hour
- Weekly Nutrition Coaching 51.00\week
- 8 Week Start Up Program 62.50 per week
- Large Group Training 129.00-249.00\mo
- Small Group Training (4-6 people) 20.00\session
Contact Info:
- Website: www.ohponline.net | www.tfweastmetro.net | www.championmeals.store
